On Space And Limitation Of Text Interpretation

The first step of translating is the interpretation of the text, so it seems beneficial to ask such a question: why can we interpret a text? Or to what degree can we interpret the text? To answer the questions above, we come to the text interpretation. This thesis is on space and limitation of text interpretation in the translating process. As a subject on interpretation, Hermeneutics has a long history in the western countries. Especially Gadamer's theory of"horizon fusion"gives many clues to the study of text interpretation in translating process.Interpretation aims at the text. A text is generated in the process of interpretation. The generation of a text requires three conditions: the author's intention, the text's intention and the reader's intention. The three conditions take effects in the process of text interpretation that is actually the process of the horizon fusion of the reader's horizon and the text's horizon. In this fusion, there exists the movement of the Hermeneutic circle. And as a result of the fusion, the degree of the horizon fusion determines the validity of the text interpretation. Because the reader's horizon is always steered by the public horizon that is determined by the culture, text interpretation actually involves three elements: the text's horizon, the reader's horizon and the public horizon. The space and limitation of text interpretation is based on these three elements. The space of text interpretation is firstly determined by the indeterminacy of the text's horizon that consists of"spots of indeterminacy"and the"gaps"between these spots. As a key element in horizon fusion, the reader's horizon provides the basis for the text's horizon to display itself and the changeability of the reader's horizon gives the text interpretation new space. The public horizon, which takes effect through the reader's intention, is also in development and different in different cultures, so text interpretation has its new space in every historical period.The limitation of text interpretation is also firstly determined by the text's horizon, which requires the text interpretation to develop within the scope of the text. And the reader's horizon is limited, so any text interpretation cannot display all the text's horizon. The public horizon determines the basic direction of text interpretation and any interpretation that contradicts with it will be regarded as invalid interpretation.